Bow-facing oar



July 5, 1927.

E. BECHLE BOW FACING OAR Filed April 6, 1925 IRVENTOR -ITORNEYS,

ll'lll UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EDWARD BEGHLE, OF KIEL, WISCONSIN.

BOW-FACING OAR.

Application filed April 6, '1926. Serial No. 100,149.

My invention is an improvement in propelling mechanism for rowboats, and relates more especially to that type commonly known as bow-facing oars in which the rower faces the direction the boat is being propelled for more conveniently directing its course.

The primary object of my invention is toprovide rowboat propelling mechanism of this general type which in the present instance is of such construction that the oars may be manipulated as readily and conveniently as the conventional straight oars ordinarily used requiring the rower to face in the opposite direction from that in which the boat is being propelled.

Another important object of my inven- 'ion is to provide for stowing the oars closely and firmly along the inner side of the boat so that they will not interfere with anyone getting in and out of the boat. I

With these principal objectsin view my invention consists of a bow-facing oar com prising a pair of intermeshing gearwheels to which are attached respectively a blade portion and a handle portion to dispose said portions or sections of the oar tangentially and also parallel with the faces of said gearwheels; in connection with a. swiveled support for the gearwheels; whereby when the oar is not in use the two parts or sections thereof may be folded at the inner side of the boat in locked engagement with each other and with the seat of the boat so as to be firmly supported out of the way; all as hereinafter fully described and specifically set forth in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings:

Figure 1 is a side view of one of the bowfacing oars showing the same folded at the inner side of the boat.

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the swivelled sup port in upright position, the gearwheels and cooperating parts of the oar being shown in dotted lines.

Fig. 3 is a side view of said support.

Fig. 4 is a face View of one of the gearwheels, and

Fig. 5 an edge view thereof.

In carrying out my invention I provide a swivelled supporting member 10for the gearwheels and parts of the oar hereinafter describedwhich is in the form of a casting presenting a horizontal body portion with downwardly and outwardly curved arms 11 a'tits ends each terminating in a rounded head or ball 12 by means of which the supporting memberis mounted in sockets 13 sccured tothegunwale 14 of the boat. This supporting member" is provided with spaced apart gudgeons15.15 projecting outwardly from the body. portion thereof to receive intermeshing gearwheels 16 16, to one of which is attached the blade section 17 of the oar and to the other the handle section 18, and for the purpose of. firmly securing each section of the oar to its respective gearwheel said gearwheels are each formed with an integral attaching member 19 at one side thereof disposed tangentially and also parallel with the face of the gearwheel. The gearwheels including their attaching members, are alike in form, and it will be noted that the attaching-member 19 projects at both ends slightlyrbeyond the toothed periphery of the gearwheel so that when the gearwheels are mounted on the support 10 and meshed as shown in Fig. 1 the blade portion or section 17 of the oar will be horizontal and the companion section 18 at an angle thereto with the adjoining ends of the attaching members 19 engaged and the outer end of the handle section in contact with the seat 30 of the boat to firmly lock the oar mechanism in this position. Each attaching member is recessed to receive the oar section which may be secured therein by any suitable means, as for instance by bolts and nuts 20.

To hold the gearwheels on the gudgeons and also brace the gudgeonsfor increased stability of the oar mechanism I provide a cross-bar 21 having sockets 22 at its ends which lit over the ends of the gudgeons and are attached thereto by cotter-pins 23. This cross-bar, as well as the swivelled supporting member 10 are provided with an in tegral web 10" to add strength to these parts.

The sockets 13 which are attached on the gunwale of the boat to receive the headed ends 12 of the supporting member 10 are each in two parts comprising a base 24 and removable cap 25 conjointly forming a socket in which the head or ball 12 is fulcrumed, the base being fastened to the gunwale by screws 26 and the cap to the base by bolt 27 with the cap having a rib 28 at its inner side seating in a corresponding recess in the top of the base to prevent lateral movement of the parts when they are intimately connected by the bolt.

It will be understood that the bow-facing oar hereinbetore described is duplicated at opposite sides of the boat for use in propelling the boat, and that in the operation of rowing a boat it is necessary only to swing the handle section 18 of the oar upwardly in'iparting a like movement to the blade section and when the handle section is moved forward the blade section will be moved outboard and forwardly in position to be manipulated backward and torward by a corresponding backward and for ward movement of the handle section; in other words the jointed sections of the oar operate in unison and in the same direction so that a pulling movement of the handle section, with the rower facing forward, will impart a corresponding rearward movement to the blade section and it the latter is dipped in the water during this movement it will propel the boat forward, the recovering stroke out of the water being accomplished by depressing the handle section as it is brought forward; said handle section being thus manipulated in the same manner as an ordinary straight oar is manipulated the only difference being that the boat is propelled forwardly or in the direction the rower is facing.

The particular arrangement herein shown and described in addition to possessing the obvious advantages of a bow-facing oar in permitting the rower to face the direction he is going also provides a strong and compact jointed oar for the purpose which may be quickly moved to folded and locked position at the inner side of the boat to be not only out of the Way but also firmly and securely supported in such position.

I claim v 1. A bow-facing oar for row-boats com-- prising a swiveled supporting-member having spaced apart gudgeons, gearwheels pivotally mounted on said gudgeons and in mesh with each other, a blade section attached to one of the gearwheels at the outer side of the pivot to project outwardly from the boat, and a handle section attached to the other gearwheel atthe outer side of the pivot to project inwardly, in the operative position of the oar, whereby the oar sections can be folded and housed within the boat so as to extend rearwardly one above the other at the inner side of the boat.

2. A bow-facing oar i or row-boats comprising a swiveled supporting member having spaced apart gudgeons gearwheels pivotally mounted on said gudgeons and in mesh with each other, an oar attaching member on each gearwheel extending gentially thereof and projecting a t both ends beyond the gearwheel, a blade section secured to the attaching member of one of the gearwheels to project outwardly therefrom at the outer side of the pivot of said gearwheel, and a handle section secured to the attaching member of the other gear-wheel to extend inwardly at the outer side of the pivot of said gearwheel, in the operative position of the oar, whereby the oar sections can be t'olded and housed within the boat in locked engagement with the seat with the end of one of the attaching members in engagement with an end of theother attach- H1811 memb er.

EDWARD BECHLE. 

